378 Survey of Fishing-Grounds^ West Coast of Ireland, \di^()—\%^\. 



The species was not previously known as an inhabitant of the British area, 

 nor is much information as to its geographical distribution available. It has long 

 been known, however, as an inhabitant of the deep-water off the coast of Portugal, 

 where, with other of its congeners, it forms the object of a regular fishery. This 

 was first brought to public notice in this country by Dr. Perceval Wright, who had 

 occasion to visit Setubal when endeavouring to verify the presence of Hyalonema 

 in European waters. He has given (Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist., 1868, vol. ii., 

 p. 426) an interesting account of his experiences, but the onl}^ species identified 

 on that occasion was C. ccelolepis. This led to an expression of opinion by 

 Dr. Giinther ("Chall.," vol. xxii., p. 5), that all the European members of the 

 genus were inhabitants of deep water, and the results of the expedition of the 

 "Travailleur" and "Talisman" have since shown that this is the case. 



Dr. Vaillant himself took part in a fishing cruise in one of the boats engaged 

 in the industry, and his account is of such interest that we make no apology for 

 paraphrasing it at considerable length. 



He remarks that the shark fishery at Setubal, of which C. sqiiamosus is the 

 commonest product, has been in existence from time immemorial, and constitutes 

 a regular industry, though the number of boats engaged, viz. three at Setubul 

 and about as many at Cezimba, is not considerable. The boats are about sixteen 

 or nineteen feet long, broad, and strongly built, but are at the same time 

 "balanced so as to yield to the slightest impulse of the water,"* and therefore 

 able to keep the sea in foul weather ; this is the more advisable since the 

 distance of the fishing- grounds often necessitates a trip of several days' duration, 

 with a possible difficulty of making the harbour on return. 



The particular boat selected by Dr. Vaillant for observation was manned by 

 nine men and a boy. 



The apparatus employed consists of lines, mounted at equal distances with 

 cod-hooks on snoods about five feet in length, each line being about 97 feet long. 

 From 20 to 40 of these lines are joined end-to-end, in the usual manner, so that 

 from 400 to 800 hooks are employed at the same time. 



The lines are shot from the bow, the boat meanwhile being rowed with a 

 couple of oars — longer than those in ordinary use — in order to prevent fouling. 

 The chief peculiarity of the operation seems to be that no buoys are used. The 

 end of the line first shot is weighted with a couple of stones, whilst the last line 

 is made fast to a cord about 700 fathoms long (termed by Vaillant a " maitresse 

 corde"), one end of which is kejDt in the boat. From our own experience on 

 board the " Harlequin " we can understand that this is a wise precaution, since, 

 on the occasion when our Centroj^horus was caught, although we were using 



* This description seems to suggest something of the buihl of a whale-boat, or Greencastle "yawl," 

 with a good rake fore-and-aft. 



